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Infusing Technology into Your Classroom

January 24, 2017

As you begin 2017, make it a goal to try new things in order
to enhance your teaching and increase student engagement. One way to do this is
by taking advantage of new technologies. By incorporating technology more regularly
in your classroom, you will immediately energize your teaching and positively
impact your students’ learning experiences. Let’s take a look at some
technology you can use in your Pre-K-12 classrooms that will help you create
engaging, real-world learning experiences.

Augmented
Reality/Virtual Reality

As teachers, we want to expose our students
to creative, hands-on learning experiences. One way to do this is to use
virtual reality to “visit” places around the world. Imagine taking your
students on a virtual trip to ancient Rome or on a deep-sea adventure to
explore the Great Barrier Reef! With virtual or augmented reality technologies,
these adventures are literally at your fingertips. Augmented reality brings
educational experiences and lessons to life by creating 3D figures in a
360-degree virtual environment using enhanced images, graphics, and/or
sensations. Virtual reality experiences provide artificial, computer-generated
simulations of real-life situations. While they serve different purposes, both
technologies enhance and enrich educational experiences.

With online programs like
Google Expeditions or
educational apps such as
Aug That! you can
bring live, active learning experiences to your students quite easily. Google
Expeditions provides students with virtual reality experiences, a guide for the
expedition, and a virtual reality viewer through the use of a tablet. Aug That!
is a dynamic augmented reality app offering animated lessons and activity
sheets that fit the specific needs of your learners. In addition, if you are a
science teacher, you may want to explore
Daqri’s
Anatomy 4D augmented reality app, which allows students to view a 4D model
of the human body and various biological systems. Finally,
Virtual
Reality Education Pathfinder (VERP) provides students with the opportunity
to research and design their own virtual reality programs.

3D Printing

3D printing allows you and your students to
create three-dimensional solid objects from digital files. Although 3D printing
has been available and widely used across Pre-K-12 schools for a while, the
technology was very expensive. Now, however, 3D printers have become much more affordable
and accessible, making them a hot ticket item for school districts looking to
bring creative real-world experiences into classrooms.

Consider using
MakerBot
grants to help your school gain funding to purchase 3D printers for your
classroom. Use these
lessons
plans from MakerBot to jumpstart the 3D printing experience in your
classroom.

Smart
Phones

Instead of asking students to put their
phones away, plan ways to integrate smart phones into your lessons. Creating a
mobile-friendly environment can actually increase engagement and teach students
important skills about using their devices to access information and improve organization.
Check out this
NEA blog by a
veteran teacher to see how he harnesses the power of technology in his
classroom by encouraging students to use their smart phones to increase
productivity and efficiency. In addition, learn more about how to use smart
phones to create interactivity by reading this
EdWeek
article. Just like with any tool, make sure to set clear expectations and
guidelines about how and when to use it.

Erica Kesilman is a passionate and experienced educator. With
a Master of Education from Lehigh University and Master of Arts in K-12
Educational Administration from Kean University, Erica has over 10 years of
experience as a classroom teacher and educational technology
supervisor/coordinator. As a classroom teacher, she has designed and
implemented technology-based units of study aligned to state and national
standards in addition to developing and teaching a K-5 basic skills language
and math program. She also served as a technology facilitator and trainer
to help other teachers learn to integrate 21st century skills into their
lessons through technology. Erica has lead professional development workshops
and presented at state-wide technology conferences. She currently serves
as course developer and facilitator at Advancement Courses.